Arsenal will play Real Madrid at home and Bayern Munich in Germany

Arsenal will host Real Madrid, Borussia Dortmund, Lille and Sabah in the 2026/27 Champions League league phase.

Their four away matches will be against Bayern Munich, Real Betis, Napoli and Slavia Prague. The draw confirmed the venues but not the order of the games.

Real Madrid will visit Arsenal

Real Madrid are the highest-profile visitors on Arsenal’s list. Borussia Dortmund will also travel to north London, while Lille and Sabah complete the four home opponents. These are four separate matches. Arsenal will not play a return match against any of those clubs during the league phase.

Home support can be valuable, but the different styles will require different plans. Real Madrid bring experience, Dortmund play at high speed, and Lille and Sabah offer separate tactical tests.

Arsenal will visit Bayern and Napoli

Arsenal will travel to Bayern Munich, Real Betis, Napoli and Slavia Prague. Each trip gives the team one chance to collect points. The visit to Bayern is the largest test on paper. Napoli also offer a demanding stadium and a team that can press aggressively.

Betis and Slavia cannot be treated as minor fixtures. Away matches can change quickly when the home side starts with energy and protects its penalty area well.

Arsenal received eight separate matches

The league-phase format does not use four-team groups. Arsenal received two opponents from each of the four draw pots. One opponent from each pair is at home and the other is away. This rule produced four home matches and four away matches.

All eight results feed into one 36-team table. Arsenal do not need to win a small group, and there is no home-and-away aggregate score at this stage.

Points across the full schedule decide qualification

A win is worth three points and a draw is worth one. The leading eight clubs in the final table advance directly to the round of 16. Teams placed from ninth to 24th enter a two-leg knockout playoff. The bottom 12 clubs leave the competition.

That system rewards consistency. A difficult evening against Real Madrid or Bayern can be repaired in another match, but every point still affects the final position.

Exact dates will follow in the final calendar

UEFA has confirmed Arsenal’s opponents and the venue for every match. It still has to place those matches into the eight available rounds. The opening round will be played from 8 to 10 September. Later rounds continue through the winter and the league phase ends on 27 January.

Supporters should wait for the official fixture list before arranging travel. The draw result is final, while the dates and kick-off times remain to be published.

Arsenal can study its opponents before the dates are published

The coaching staff already know the type of work required for each opponent. They can study Real Madrid and Dortmund as home matches, while the travel team can prepare the longer away schedule for Munich, Seville, Naples and Prague. The order still matters because recovery time changes from one week to another. Arsenal may have an important domestic match before or after a European trip. UEFA will consider stadium access and other calendar conflicts before publishing the complete fixture list.

None of that changes the draw itself. Arsenal have eight confirmed opponents, four at home and four away. The team will collect points from those eight separate matches and its final place in the 36-team table will decide the next round.